Mary Chapin Carpenter - John Doe No. 24 Lyrics
I was standing on this sidewalk in 1945 in jacksonville, illinoisWhen asked what my name was there came no replyThey said i was a deaf and sightless half-wit boyBut lewis was my name though i could not say itI was born and raised in new orleansMy spirit was wild so i let the river take itOn a barge and a prayer upstreamThey searched for a mother and they searched for a fatherAnd they searched 'til they searched no moreThe doctors put to rest their scientific testAnd they named me john doe no. 24And they all shook their heads in pityFor a world so silent and darkWell there's no doubt that life's a mysteryBut so too is the human heartAnd it was my heart's own perfume when the crape jasmine bloomed on st. charles avenueThough i couldn't hear the bells of the streetcars comingBy toeing the track i knewAnd if i were an old man returningWith my satchel and pork pie hatI'd hit every jazz joint on bourbonAnd i'd hit every one on basin after thatThe years kept passing as they passed me aroundFrom one state ward to anotherLike i was an orphaned shoe from the lost and foundAlways missing the otherThey gave me a harp last christmasAnd all the nurses took a danceLately i've been growing listlessBeen dreaming again of the pastI'm wandering down to the banks of the great big muddyWhere the shotgun houses standI am seven years old and i feel my daddyReach out for my handWhile i drew breath no one missed meSo they won't on the day that i ceasePut a sprig of crape jasmine with meTo remind me of new orleansI was standing on this sidewalk in 1945 in jacksonville, illinois....
